Rugby: Sonny Bill still eyeing black jersey

Sonny Bill Williams is eligible to play for New Zealand, Australia or Samoa. Photo / Getty Images

Sonny Bill Williams is still eyeing the 2011 rugby World Cup, and says the All Blacks remains his ultimate goal.

The former Kiwis league international and Bulldogs star is eligible for New Zealand, Australia and Samoa if he pursues a test rugby jersey.

For now, Williams, 23, was content to rake in the big money for French club Toulon but said the black jersey at the World Cup still held his interest.

"Definitely. But you just have to look at the All Blacks backline and the players that are left out of the All Blacks team, you know the quality of the players over there is crazy," he told ABC radio.

"I think I'm a pretty confident player and I think over the next couple of years if I stay on the field and I string together a lot of games and keep playing good footy and I keep learning the way I am now, I can (make it).

"But at this stage if I was a New Zealand selector, I wouldn't be in a rush to come knock on my door.

"So I've just got to do what I've got to do and look out for me and my family."

Growing up in Auckland until he was signed by the Bulldogs as a 16-year-old, Williams said it was natural to dream of wearing the black jersey.

"When you're in New Zealand, the All Blacks are always on tv, they're always in the papers.

"So I guess it would be an honour to play for New Zealand for the All Blacks, but like I said before with coming back to play rugby league, a lot of things have got to fall into place for that to happen."

Williams recently signed a year-long extension with Toulon, just 14 games into his new career after walking out on the Bulldogs last August, one year into a five-year contract.

He said his friend and top boxer Anthony Mundine helped him pay the Bulldogs A$750,000 to extricate him from his contract, but he intended to square up the debt.

"(He loaned) not all of it, but a fair bit of it. But I've been working hard at paying it back," Williams said.

Williams learned a lot from his Australian rugby debut at centre for the Barbarians against Wallabies captain Stirling Mortlock in Sydney a week ago, and was pleasantly surprised when Mortlock gifted his test jersey afterwards.

His Barbarians teammate, All Black Luke McAlister, then said the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) should "break the bank" to sign Williams when his Toulon contract ended.

"I definitely want to play rugby at the top level, international rugby. But if that doesn't work out, then it doesn't work out," Williams said.

"When I first went to rugby I wanted it all, and I thought it was just going to happen just like that, but I've come to learn that good things take time.

"So I've just got to be patient, I've just got to keep trying to play good footy and learn as much as I can."

- NZPA